Thousands of Lives, One Heart
by rulesandscrictures
Summary: An incident at Purgatory turns everything on it's head, and makes Shepard question her choices and her heart. Kaidan/Shepard/Vega love triangle. I'm bad at writing summaries, please read it. Rated T for caution.


**So, this is my first Mass Effect fan-fic. This'll be a Kaidan/Shepard/James love triangle. I can't be the only James-obsessed fan out there.**

If there was one thing to be said about Purgatory, it was that they served the best drinks for getting utterly off your face. Vega loved coming to the Citadel for precisely this reason. He was able to get drunk as hell, go back to the Normandy, go whatever crazy mission they had coming, then come back to Purgatory and forget it under the influence of drink again.

Tonight though, things were different. He'd been scanning the crowd when he'd seen a familiar dark-haired woman weaving her way towards the bar. Alexa Shepard, clearly out for a drink or two.

"Hey, Lola!" He called, and when she turned, he motioned her over to his end of the bar.

"Drinking again, James? Tut tut." Shepard asked with a smile as she came up beside him and leaned against the bar.

"Come on, i'm not drunk that often. Just... when we come here." James hedged. "The shit we get up to, i'm surprised you don't do the same."

"Yeah, well... maybe tonight i'll join you for once." Shepard laughed.

James could guess why. He had, after all, been with her as Cerberus had infiltrated the Citadel, and had seen her have to kill Councillor Udina. Nearly have to kill her old squadmate, Kaidan Alenko, come to that. She'd had a tough day.

"Hell yeah." He said with a grin. "Live for a change, Lola." He signalled the bartender, who passed two drinks along the bar.

-o-o-o-o-o-

A few hours later, and with a good number of drinks littering the bar before them (James would never be sure quite how many he had had), Shepard said she was going to head back to the Normandy.

"What? Hey, come on, the night's young." James complained. Truth be told, he'd been enjoying this. Seeing the real Alexa, instead of the soldier's mask she put on, even when they had flirted. He'd seen her softer, more vulnerable side tonight. He could guess she knew he had too, and this was part of the reason for her department.

"For you, maybe, but i'm not so hardcore. Besides, we've got a new crew member, remember? I want to check how he's doing."

"Oh right." James said, a frown on his features now. "Alenko." He knew Shepard and Alenko had a history. He wasn't entirely sure why this bothered him so damn much.

"_Major_ Alenko, right." Shepard said with a smile. She got down from her barstool a little unsteadily, and patted his shoulder. "See you during the hangover, James."

"Hey, Lola." Alexa glanced back. James had turned, was looking right at her. "Thanks for tonight. It was nice."

She felt a fluttering in her stomach that had very little to do with the alcohol she had consumed, she was certain.

"No problem." She said with a smile. Then she left, knowing that all she wanted was to get back and get sober. The drink was doing weird things to her emotions.

She exited Purgatory and headed towards the lift, her mind elsewhere. Not noticing the group of five batarians that glanced her way, then followed her towards it. As she waited for the lift to come, they gathered around her.

"Hey, lady, do I know you?" One of them asked suddenly. His eyes, and the eyes of his friends, were all on her. Glaring at her. Alexa felt a sense of disquiet, mingled with annoyance. This was the last thing she needed.

"If you didn't, you wouldn't all be staring at me like that." She murmured.

"Mm, you're right. You must be the Spectre bitch that massacred thousands of our race then. _Commander_ Shepard." He used the title sarcastically. "Only reason you got reinstated is because of the Reapers. You'd have been given to us if not. And you really wouldn't have enjoyed that."

Alexa glanced at the floor display, just wanting the damn lift to come. She really didn't want to try and fight five angry batarians. She kept her tone calm, diplomatic.

"Whether you like it or not, i'm reinstated, and i'm trying to stop the Reapers. That helps everyone, including your people." She said. She felt tense, not liking these odds, and especially not liking not having a weapon with her.

"Yeah, well... you still need to be taught a lesson." The first one said. His voice was almost a hiss.

The lift doors opened, and Alexa made to step inside, but one of the batarians barred her way with his arm. Alexa stepped back, but glared around at them.

"You think ganging up to beat up a _Spectre _and a soldier is really a good idea? Get out of my way, and I won't

"Ohh, you won't get a chance to identify us." He said with a grin. Then a punch came from behind, and Alexa was sent pitching forwards, seeing stars.

-o-o-o-o-o-

After Alexa left, the club didn't seem like as much fun anymore. James finished off his last beer, then started towards the exit. He'd go back to the ship, sleep and ignore the jibes Esteban was bound to throw at him.

He was irrationally annoyed. At Alenko, at Shepard, at himself even. He hadn't wanted this to happen.

When he'd been assigned as her bodyguard, he'd known the basics about her. Alliance soldier, Spectre, in serious shit with the batarians, and needed to give answers. Everyone talked about her in glowing terms. Beyond that, he didn't know much.

Those months had taught him a lot. Alexa Shepard was something else. In the face of everything – being suspended from the military, the prospect of jail or being sent to the batarians, the constant strain – she had stayed cool, calm and under control. Only twice had he seen that mask slip, and both times, she had thought he'd left the room. He'd found himself wanting to get beneath that, to earn her trust, get her to open up.

She had warmed to him. They had become friends, though there had always been a little professionalism in the way. He had found himself... for lack of a better phrase, falling for her.

And now, tonight, she had let her guard down fully. Gotten drunk, let the mask slip, shown some of the pain and fear she was feeling. It had only strengthened his want to help her, to ease some of the stress and pain she must be feeling.

_Christ, Lola, what're you doing to me?_

He exited the club and glanced around. There were no queues to get in now, it was pretty quiet. A few groups of people were milling around outside the club, and there was a group of batarians waiting for the lift.

No. Not just batarians. Shepard was there. Shepard, surrounded by batarians. Angry looking batarians.

He had just processed that when one of the batarians behind Shepard hit her in the back of the head, sending her to the ground. Next thing, they were all kicking and punching at her on the ground, five on one. After a few seconds blind shock, Vega sprinted towards them, the shock and anger making him suddenly very sober.

"Get the fuck away from her, you _bastardos_!" He bellowed. A couple of the batarians looked up and saw him incoming. One man wouldn't normally have been cause for concern for a group of five, but his size seemed to scare them. The group scattered, running back in the direction of the club. For a second, James considered giving chase, but moments later the humans that had been milling around ran after them. Satisfied that they would get theirs, he turned to Alexa.

"Shepard. Lola. You OK?"

She was awake, but looked dazed. He could see marks already on her face and arms. She'd have bruises in the morning. At his question, she nodded, made to sit up, and gave a groan, her hand moving to her side.

"Jesus, my ribs..."

"They hurt?"

"Yeah. It hurts to breath."

"OK." Vega looked around. The batarians and the men chasing them had vanished. They were the only people in the area. "Let's get you back to the Normandy. The Doc'll be able to patch you up."

"I got decked, James, this isn't like other times." Shepard said with a faint chuckle. "At least i'm not clinically dead."

"Yeah, well, just the same." Vega said with a slight smile. Shepard got up, then swayed slightly, and he put a hand on her arm to steady her.

"I... guess I feel a bit worse then I thought." Alexa murmured. She felt light-headed. She felt Vega put an arm around her waist to support her, and guide her into the lift.

"It's lucky i'm here then, no? Can't have you passing out cold in the middle of the Citadel, people'll talk."

Shepard gave a dry chuckle and leant her head back as the lift began to rise, doing her best to ignore the increase in her dizziness. She had to admit, Vega being here was a good thing.


End file.
